Tropical World, Leeds, with children
Tropical World in Leeds brings exotic animals and plants together inside a series of greenhouses.
Why visit Tropical World?
Tropical World in Roundhay Park, Leeds, is a hybrid of a zoo, aquarium and botanic gardens, housed in a series of greenhouses.
It’s a little cramped, but packs a fair amount in. There are several separate themed areas, including a desert zone with meerkats, a rainforest canopy with playful marmosets and a creature cavern with Mexican beaded lizards.
Don’t go expecting a full zoo – there isn’t the space for that – but Tropical World does offer a series of exotic animal encounters and an insight into what life in the tropics is like.
Tropical World with kids
Kids tend to be more enthused about Tropical World than adults, and you can never be quite sure which sections and creatures they’ll get entranced by. It might be a Motoro stingray from the upper reaches of the Amazon River, it might be the cheeky, climbing cotton-top tamarins.
Signage is fairly minimal, but if the kids can be bothered to read, they’ll learn a couple of things about most of the animals on display.
Tropical World review: The best bit
The butterfly section, where butterflies flit through the air under the greenhouse roof, is the most endearing part of Tropical World in Leeds. Expect to suddenly have more to carry as the kids decide it’s too hot and humid to keep their hoodies on, however.
Infants, juniors or secondary?
Tropical World is better suited to children of infant and junior school age. Older kids are likely to have seen better zoos elsewhere, and aren’t going to be too impressed.
Tropical World entry prices
One of the main selling points of Tropical World in Leeds is that it is relatively cheap. Entry tickets cost £8.40 for adults and £4.20 for children.
Prices were last checked and updated on 9 October 2024.
Full day, half day or a couple of hours?
Due to the linear walkthrough nature of Tropical World, you’ll be hard-pushed to spend more than a couple of hours there.
Attractions near Tropical World
Nearby attractions that can be combined with a visit to Tropical World include:
- The Royal Armouries in Leeds.
- Harewood House in Leeds.
- Leeds City Museum in the city centre.
Nearby cities
Tropical World is in Roundhay Park, four miles north-east of Leeds City Centre.
Other cities within a 90 minute drive of Tropical World include Manchester, Sheffield, Doncaster, York, Bradford, Wakefield, Hull and Preston.
Is it open on Mondays?
Tropical World is open daily, making it a solid bet if you want to avoid the crowds on a teacher training day Monday.
More information
For more information, visit the Tropical World website.
